Stickworks project is under way at SMOA

The Collegiate-Gothic facade of the future home of the Sarasota Museum of Art on Tamiami Trail is about to be altered by a large-scale architectural sculpture created out of a tangle of crape myrtle trees, twigs and vines.

North Carolina-based sculptor Patrick Dougherty began the three-week process of building one of his "Stickwork" sculptures on Jan. 8, after volunteers spent the weekend collecting materials from a Palmetto tree farm.

See a slideshow of the first week of work.

Dougherty envisions the sculpture as acting as a new entrance to the building, which is the historic Sarasota High School and, when $22 million in fundraising is completed, will become the campus for the Sarasota Museum of Art/SMOA, a division of the Ringling College of Art and Design. More than $15.3 million has been raised toward that goal.

Artist Patrick Dougherty

Dougherty, who has built Stickworks in countries as far away as Australia and is laying the groundwork for a project at the American embassy in Serbia ("I'm kinda jerking my hair out, working through security there," he said), was inspired by the castle-like feel of the old high school building. He's made rough sketches, but said his works typically evolve onsite.

"I think the entry way to the building is kind of architectural, so I'm kind of thinking about that," he said. "Maybe sets of galleries flank that in some way, to create the sense that you'd be able to see it from both sides.

"Each time you try to get something that seems to fit. The fact that you are not quite clear about it is good. You haven't overreacted by thinking about it in the studio."

He and some of the more than 100 volunteers will begin by laying out the footprint of the sculpture using electric cords laid on the lawn, using spray paint and drilling holes to anchor the larger trees he'll be using.

The project will cost between $50,000 and $60,000, said Wendy Surkis, president of SMOA. Funds were raised separately from the ongoing capital campaign toward the museum's ultimate goal.

Surkis described Dougherty's sculptures as "mystical and magical. You literally walk through them and peek through the windows. It's not an everyday experience to walk through an environment made of sticks and twigs."

Surkis hopes the sculpture project "will really increase the community's awareness about SMOA...We want to show the community how we will have new ideas. The way Patrick builds these sculpture, he's very creative by using these very unique materials. It's very inspiring to see how he takes a material that you wouldn't even think of and creates a magical environment."

When SMOA's fundraising goal is met — $14 million to renovate the building and an $8 million endowment — the museum will include not only gallery display space, but classrooms, a "sculpture port," a cafe and a multipurpose room.

Dougherty's sculpture will stand in front of the building for as long as three or four years, until its natural materials deteriorate.

"By having something so visible outside the building, it will let (people) see this is the kind of life, this is the kind of vitality that will be going on inside this destination once the doors are open, and it will become a bustling destination," said Surkis.

The public is invited to watch the construction of the sculpture throughout the process, with docent-led tours most days over the next three weeks. There's also a photography contest associated with the project.

"I think people will be intrigued and I would like to see that people would drive into the parking lot and stop and come to visit and watch what people are doing," said Surkis.

INTERESTED?
Work continues from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Jan. 26 on the lawn in front of the Sarasota Museum of Art in the 1000 block of South Tamiami Trail . Docent tours are at 2 p.m. daily except Jan. 18-20. For more information on SMOA and its ARTmuse programming, visit www.ringling.edu.
Visit www.ArtsSarasota.com for a slide show of other sculptures by Patrick Dougherty and for ongoing photographs during the building process.

Susan Rife

Susan Rife is the arts and books editor for the Herald-Tribune Media Group. She holds a bachelor of science degree in journalism from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. She can be reached by email or call (941) 361-4930.
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Last modified: January 4, 2013
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